Project Concordia

Project status

In progress

Aim

This project aims to test two hypotheses that:

Manual Legionella monitoring activities account for around 8% of all non-household consumption; and
Non-household users can change their behaviour in relation to Legionella risk management and save around 80% of the water dedicated to manual activities through remote flow and temperature sensing technology.

Over a two-year period, Project Concordia will deploy 1,000 remote combined flow/temperature sensors, across a range of customer types, to see if it can harmonise water demand reduction with water safety and the effective management of Legionella risk in non-domestic buildings.

Find out more on their website, which features a video of the technology used and a form to register interest.

Project updates

Date	Update
January 2026	By the end of Phase 1 in August 2025, InferSens had deployed 800 I-flow and temperature sensors and 14 gateways across seven buildings in six education organisations. The technology performed reliably, providing non-invasive, outlet-level visibility of flow and temperature. However, increased data visibility initially led to increased flushing at several sites, reflecting strong risk aversion and reluctance to move from manual to data-led Legionella management. Water use varied month to month, driven mainly by occupancy and academic calendars, showing behaviour change as the key determinant of savings. Despite limited immediate reductions, valuable secondary benefits emerged, including asset optimisation and targeted behavioural interventions. The project stalled as Infersens encountered financial difficulties. Wave has since acquired the InferSens assets, and this project will resume with a rollout to its second cohort in Spring 2026. This rollout will benefit from learning from the customer behaviours observed in the first cohort.
12 August 2025	An additional two customers in the first cohort have been visited. Total installations now sit just below 800 devices
31 July 2025	Just under 600 devices have been installed for four customers in Cohort 1, with another two customers awaiting installation for another 160 devices. Rollout is planned for six customers in Cohort 2 in August. Cohort 1 customers are providing positive feedback. Infersens (the delivery partner) is analysing the resulting drop in demand from these customers
28 February 2025	- Initial positive feedback on sensor system; interest in demonstrating sufficient use to alleviate turnover concerns. - Focus on thematic, cohort-based recruitment, pausing once initial participant capacity is reached. Installation Progress - current installations - Technology and sensors were manufactured without issues, albeit in two batches, causing a slight delay - Recruitment for the first cohort centred around educational institutions: Customer 1: 234 sensor Customer 2: 296 sensors Customer 3: 150 sensors Customer 4: 145 sensors Customer 5: 59 sensors Customer 6: 120 sensors Installation challenges noted with Cohort 1, Customer 5, due to lengthy approval processes within the customer’s organisation. For future reference some institutions possess strict permitting processes and deploying sensors in larger buildings may required additional antennas for proper connectivity. Moving forward, the strategy will not strictly adhere to the initial plan of 10 customers with a uniform sensor allocation, focusing instead on customer engagement. The future deployment approach will embrace a more flexible, rolling program, minimizing back and forth in sensor movement and prioritizing swift installation once sites are ready. Importance of continued consumer feedback on sensor experience will be a crucial part of data collection; exit surveys might be considered to assess customer sentiment. Consideration of further engagement with health and safety organisations, water management societies, and potential educational outreach (e.g., webinars on remote monitoring technology). The project timeline now stretches to potentially late October.
31 January 2025	Temporary supply chain delay with obtaining sensor devices
August 2024	Project Concordia is featured in Major Energy Users' Councils autumn 2024 edition of Buying and Using Utilities. Read the article here.